don lemon tonight and the big star, don lemon. >> how do you think the former president will resonate in terms of the current state of play within his party? >> you mean the interview he did tonight? >> yes. >> whoo, that's a big question. well -- i think, look, the more people see of the former president, i think the better. i think there is some need for clarifications about why he did some things and why he didn't

do. i will have jared coming up on the show. i think there needs to be some clarifications because people believe, donald trump was a direct sort of answer to some people to barack obama. i personally think that what happen happens. i was happy to see with anderson interviewing young men of what they were going to do. his question is profound. what do we noeed to do and how o we make it better. the politics part, he did what he could as president. he had conflicts and roadblocks and situations that other presidents did not have because he was the first one. he was the first one of anything. he just happens to be the first

black one. the rules are different for you. >> you know it will resonate. there will be some criticisms about he should have done more and he shown have known better that republicans didn't want to work with him and this should be a lesson for joe biden. >> it is interesting that he sees what's wrong within his own party but he does not prescribe a solution. i find that to be very common. even listening to senator chris murphy today. you know him from connecticut, very smart guy, you had him on your show. he was saying we got to find a way to get 60 votes. 50 votes is relevant, we got to figure out a way to get to 50. while he's intellectual correct. it is an odd reckoning. you are not getting 60 votes on anything because you guys are an open hand in the democratic party. your coalition and this is a

party of trump, they are a fist and they come at you as one. they play to win. even listening to obama tonight. he does not talk that way. it is not about doing what you have to do to keep power and use power to fulfill mandates. i don't hear it in him. no criticisms in terms of intel intellectualism of it. understand how to win in this environment. >> chris, quite frankly i have been saying that for a long time and getting criticized for and even for democrats who are currently in power and not happy. i just think that if you are looking at the raw politics of it which i have sa said -- republicans are better. does not mean they are better people. you are not saying any demographics, they're better at politicking and sticking

together and republicans fall in line. democrats don't. that was part of what the former president said. democrats many times don't have the purity test of anything and they are wholly now about many things. you can't have that. the first rule of politics democrats need to figure out is about winning. it is not about being who's more woke than the next person. it is about winning when you win,that's when you get your policies in place. that's how you do it. i don't think they right now for the most part, democrats are more concerned about, you know, who can do -- who's more on their side of what's right and you know all this stuff. i just think they should be more like republicans and they need to focus more on winning

elections rather than winning arguments and trying to who's better than this person and this person is more -- what's the word i am looking for? virtue csignaling and win. that's it. simple as that. >> look, i get why people reject that. i am just saying listening to obama tonight, he's incredibly knowle knowledgeable. >> obama is a nice person, why he was such a great president because he's a kind and decent person. except for the right. i don't see that much from republican politicians. look at who they are standing by and backing, even with all the lying. i don't think the former president, meaning obama, would do that if democrats were

standing up. he's criticizing his own party right there. >> he got beat up by his party. >> he got beat up by black people, he's too respectable and not leaning in enough and not hard enough. the pressure came from all sides when he was president. that's why i said the rules are different for him. >> there is no question about that. all you need to do is look at the interview from last week about how his numbers. you can talk to valerie about this. his numbers every time he's talking about policing would tank. white america does not want to hear a black man telling them that they have a problem. >> henry lewis gates. >> yeah, it is interesting tonight. they don't see what's wrong. i don't see any fix coming any time soon.

that's just me. i look forward to your conversations. >> democrats need to learn how to throw a punch. >> you have to figure out how to fend or how to return it or at least learn not to get hit. >> stop it, i don't want to offend anybody. the current democrat s or the current ones. i don't know who they are. bipartisanship for the sake , bipartisanship is on the line right now. what makes you think they're going to stand up and do the right thing. >> i don't know if they are talking it. the space i have not heard explored it is do a one off. >> yep, i don't agree with that. >> or at least return the rules to what they used to be to the

no nostalgia -- make it harder to filibuster. >> anyway, i love you. >> i love you d. lemon. >> talk to you later. >> this is "don lemon tonight," what we are hearing from former president barack obama should make every single american sit up and take notes. this is really serious. our democracy is imperial, we are right now in a crisis. i know people are saying our crisis is on a rise. no, we are in a crisis. it was not a picnic. there it is right there. america divided by race, demanding justice for george floyd flooded our streets.

and the assault on what may be our most precious rights is the right to vote. that assault spreading all across this country. former president barack obama speaking out on all of it tonight. i want you to listen to what he told anderson of what's going in more and more states across legislation. >> are we more teethering or are in crisis? >> i think we have to worry when one of our major political parties is willing to embrace a way of thinking about our democracy that would be unrecognizable and unacceptable even five years ago or a decade ago. when you look at some of the laws that are being passed at the state legislature level

where legislatures are basically saying we are going to take away the certification of the election process. he's from scivil servants and secretary of state and we'll put it in the hands of partisan legislatures who may or may not decide the state's electoral votes should go to one person or another. when that's all done it, i guess the backdrop of large numbers of republicans having been convinced wrongly that there were something fishy about the last election, we got a problem. you know this is part of the reason why i think is a conversation around voting rights at a national level is important. >> it is important. >> and as the assault on voting rights, former president obama talking about gather strengths for the people act is stalled in

the senate. let's face it here. nothing is going to happen if senator republicans obstruct like they did when they did not allow the debate of the january 6th insurrection at the capitol. if they put their own political lives ahead of the democracy, they were elect to defend, that's not going to happen. >> all those congressmen started looking around, you know what, i will lose my job and get voted out of office. another way of saying this is i didn't expect that there would be so few people who would say well i don't mind losing my office because it is too important. america is too important. >> our democracy is too important. we didn't see that. now, i am still a hoping and change guy. my hope is because the tides will turn. that does apply to each of us to

understand democracy is not self-executed. if it does not happen automa automatically. it happens because these values and truths we hold self-evidence. this is important, we'll invest and stand up for it even when it is not politically convenient. you heard him. democracy does not just happen automatically. we have to stand up for it. what kind of democracy do we have when the people we elect to represent us won't even stand up to vote. now that democratic joe manchin says he won't vote for it and slamming the door in an op-ed saying i believe partisan voting legislation will destroy the

weaken vines of our nation. i will not vote to weaken or eliminate our filibuster. >> senator mcconnell, the head of the republicans in the senate says that he's a 100% focused on blocking the biden agenda. are you being naive about this continued talk of cooperation. >> i think he's 100% wrong and trying to block all the good things we are trying to do for america. i am going to continue to work with my bipartisan friends and hopefully we can get more. >> hopefully, hopefully. >> chris wallace used the right word, "naive."

manchin is calling for a narrow bill which would allow the federal government to challenge states that make changes to the alleged laws. even that stands to no chance of winning. senator manchin seems to sacrifice democrats of getting anything done with a minority party that refuses to take bipartisanship seriously. he's trying to be bipartisan with a party that refuses to take bipartisanship. all because of his defense of filibuster. >> okay. i want you to listen to this. closely. this is dr. martin luther king, 1963, this is what he had to aa about the filibuster way back then. >> the tragedy is we have a congress with the senate that has a minority of misguided

senators who'll use the fill bub filibuster to keep the majority from voting. suddenly they do not want the majority people to vote because they know they do not represent the majority of the american people. >> 1963. >> dr. king. now, this is the formal president barack obama of what he calls the filibuster relative to jim crow. >> if all this takes eliminating the filibuster, another jim crow r relic, securing the guy's giving rights of americans, that's what we should do. >> before it was called the filibuster, used to defeat in

the anti-lynching bill in the 1920s. in 1957, senator strohm took it to the floor speaking for a record of 24 hours. the longest filibuster in senate history, 60 days almost to derail that landmark, civil rights act. 1983. jesse helms, the senator dropped his filibuster, declaring martin luther king jr. day a federal holiday. is a filibuster worth voting rights for millions of people? bipartisanship just for the sake of bipartisan? that's how we are divided tonight. america is divided. everybody in their own echo chambers and it seems nothing

ded divides us more than race. here is former president barack obama of what he had to say about all that tonight. >> there are certain right-wing media venues, for example, that monetize and capitalize on stoking the fear and resentment of a white population that's witnessing a changing america and seeing demographic changes and do every thing they can to give people a sense that their way of life is threatening and the people are trying to take advantage of them. we are seeing it right now. you would think with all the public policy debates that are taken place right now that the republican party would be engaged in a significant debate about how we are going to deal with the economy and what are we going to do with climate change and what are we going to do with

low and be hold the single most important issues, apparently right now is critical race theory. who knew that was the threat to our republic? those debates are powerful because they get at it. # what story do we tell about ourselves? >> like i said, america, the divided. former president barack obama warning us we are in crisis tonight. democracy is imperial and we'll have to decide what we are going to do about that. what do we do about it? so will america choose to defend democracy? va valerie jared is here next, that's her former boss has this warning tonight. >> all of us citizens have to recognize that the path towards an undemocratic america is not going to happen in just one bang. it happens in a series of steps.

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former president obama speaking out tonight.

a lot of talk about this, valerie jared was here. the author of "finding my voice." it is good to see you, you are the perfect person to talk about this interview. good evening to you, thank you for joining. >> thank you, don. good evening to you, too. >> the former president is pointing out what's going on in the change of election laws and the lies that so many republicans believe. is there any question that he believes our democracy is in crisis. >> when anderson asked him, look, we are in trouble here when you have state after state, almost 50 states with attempts to undermine the ability of people to vote and when it is so clear, don, the people they are trying to suppress are people of color and young people. they didn't win the election on the up and up. and now they're trying to change the law to make it harder for people to vote. the thought that in georgia is against the law to bring food

and water for people while standing in line. come on, that's ridiculous. why would we be making it easier for people who can't take off on a tuesday. that's what a democracy is all about. >> he's saying that, that's why the conversation on voting rights is so important and why we need to talk about this filibuster. watch this valerie. >> this is why i think conversations about some of the institutional structural barriers working better like the elimination of the filibuster or the end to gerrymandering is important. all of us as citizens have to recognize that the path towards an undemocratic america is not going to happen in just one bang. it happens in a series of steps. when you look at what's

happening in places like hungary and poland, they did not have traditions like we did. they were not as deeply rooted and as recently ten years ago, w we are functioning democracy and now essentially becoming -- >> democracy dies at the ballot box. >> that's exactly right. >> i reminded my viewers that i had you a couple of months ago and you were getting to the same point. there comes a time choosing the democracy or filibuster, is that moment now? >> when the stakes are as high as they are. i think you have a limited opportunity to act. in any other country behaving the way we are right now, united states would be critical. we would be saying that's not the way democracy behaves and so look, the voting rights act is an important act to pass. if we kcannot get it pass with

the filibuster, we should consider passing it any way. american family plan, all the legislation that president biden is pushing right now is what's going to bring us back for the brink of disaster of where we have been, protecting our democracy, rebuilding our economy and strengthening families, is all that far more important than the filibuster? >> listen to the former president talking about the gop. >> i thought that there were enough guard rails intu institutionally even after trump was elected that you would have so-called republican establishment who would say okay, it is a problem if the white house does not seem to be concerned of russian meddling or there is a problem if we have a

president who's saying that, neo-nazis marching in charlottesville, they're good people on both sides. and, the degree to which we did not see that republican establishment, say hold on, time out, that's not acceptable but rather be cowed into accepting it and finally culminating january 6th where what originally was oh don't wo worry -- this is not going anywhere, we are just letting trump and others vent. >> valerie, this is who the gop is. what does it mean for president obama's push for bipartisanship. >> he has to try and find a coalition of the willing and maybe he will. i also think he's already done

this. he's only going to wait so long. it is in the country's best interest to have bipartisanship theory but the way they are behaving for all the reasons you just outlined, they are not abiding by those normal guard rails protected of our democracy for a long time. when you can't count on them to behave responsibly, the adults in the room needs to do the right thing. >> valerie, thank you so much for join ugs. who president obama blaming for politics and what he sees as a solution. will any of it works in the gop that's not based reality? scuff defense. honey! scuff defense. [ chuckles ] scuff! -defense!

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former president obama is warning about our democracy. >> david axelrod is joining us. david, i am afraid what you are going to say. i understand you want to talk about chris and i, the cross talk that we had. the hand off. >> here is the thing as i was listening to this and i had to smile as chris was talking about how weak democrats are and they don't know how to fight and so son. i work for a president of who we saw tonight who won two national elections by more than 51% of the vote. the last guy do that was dwight eise eisenhower. how did he do it? how did a unwilling to fight guy won two elections, an

african-american man named barack obama. i think he knows something about how to fight. he led us out of that crisis despite the unwithering opposition of the republican party. he passed health reform. he did it. don't tell me he does not know how to fight. he certainly was successful. >> well, maybe i will let chris speak for himself. the way i heard it that he was not talking about the former president, he was talking about the democrats now but maybe i think he did say that i didn't hear the former president barack obama offering any solutions. >> no, he's too polite and i love chris and i would like to have this conversation with him

but that's simply not the case. the other reality check is yes, yes, it would be great. i hear all the time from my progressive friends, forget about bipartisanship, pass the damn bills. as matthew can tell you, even if you navigate around the filibuster, you need 50 votes. if you don't have the 50 votes, you can't pass anything. joe biden passed his american rescue act because joe manchin and all the other democrats supported it. that's the reality that he lives in everyday and until he can cobble together 50 much less 60, these are all academic discu discussions. if someone else has a great idea of how to get that 50 votes, that's a constructive question.

to say if you don't fight hard enough to me is an empty word. >> chris was talking about the same thing. we are talking about now. not when obama was president. this is a whole different world now. this is the post-trump era. things are different now. >> matthew, i will let you weigh in, what do you think david said. >> well, i have been working for both democrats for many years and republicans. i think there are democratic fighters. the problem today we are dealing with a republican party that no one is fundamentally faced in the way we faced before because they don't care about government. all is they create grievance and fears among their votes. it is a virtue that sometimes becomes weakness.

democrats can feel shame and they are backed down a lot by that sort of push back oftentimes when they should not be. republicans feel no shame today which is not good because they're willing to do anything and put up with anything and tolerate any corrupt and incompetent leaders if it gets them what they want. i agree with david, we need to get rid of the filibuster. if you are a person that wants voting rights and increase minimum wage or wants climate change reform or a person that wants gun reform, you can't have any of that as it exists today. in order to get those things, you got to get rid of the filibuster. in the end, the only way to overcome this problem is call off the truth which i think is important and where it is, put pressure on joe manchin and senator co senators. it is the 2024 election. i think the only way we are going to get through this is the

republican party has to suffer devastating losses in a number of election in a row in order for us to get through this. that's the only real way we'll get through this is republicans have to lose badly in a series of elections. >> this is what i like is having this conversation because i know and you just know it is going to happen on social media. >> oh, how dare don lemon and david and matthew? we are just having a conversation and that's the problem of the country now. i don't know about civility. people don't know how to discuss things anymore without being curious instead of judging people. none of that is happening. we are having a conversation. david, let me ask you this, you interviewed congresswoman liz cheney for your podcast. i want to play some of it and i want to get your reaction. here it is. >> sure. >> what donald trump did is the most dangerous thing and the most egregious violation of an

oath of office of any presidents in our history. a few weeks he did that, the leader of the republicans in the house would be at mar-a-lago essentially pleading with him to somehow come back into the fold or whatever it was he was doing was inexcusable. >> so here is the thing. we got to talk about it because you talked about it with her. he was back out this weekend spreading the lies, cheney is standing up for her party for what the party won't do. can she really get through when he has a megaphone straight to the base? >> look, first of all, i think she said she was standing up for democracy. i don't agree with liz cheney on hardly anything but i do share with her a love and a reverence for this democracy which is

president obama pointed out ti tonight. this democracy, it is not a gift, it is a project. it requires us to be vigilant. the other republicans would look at her as a negative example in the sense of she paid a price for standing up. she was repudiated by the members of her own caucus. she points to her reelect next year to matthew's point of 2022 and 2024. she points to reelection as a referendum on the direction of the party and the country. she's anticipating that she will get a full furry attack from the tr trump's forces for standing up against him and for democracy. she pauses her race and victory as striking a blow against them. but, right now i think there are a lot of republicans who are just running in fear. she says some of them are

running in fear of their own security but they are just running in fear of the political wait of the trump voters and they don't want to take them on even when it means turning the other way on things like what we saw on january 6th. >> yeah. >> matthew, i owe you one. can you give me ten seconds. don't get me in trouble please. >> my only issue with liz cheney is she's in a party that she no longer fits in. that party no longer fits who she is. if she believes in our democracy, she needs to lever t lever -- leave the party that's trying to destroy the democracy. she needs to leave the party that's doing exactly what she's criticizing trump for. >> david, matthew, david, don't be mad at you, i still love you. >> i am not mad at you.

progressive democrats criticizing joe manchin. the op-edam may as well be titl, "why vote to preserve jim crow." congressman jones joins me next. (vo) jack was one of six million pets in animal shelters in need of a home. he found it in a boy with special needs, who also needed him. as part of our love promise, subaru and our retailers host adoption events and have donated 28 million dollars to support local animal shelters. we're proud to have helped over 230,000 pets so far...

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i want to discuss this with congressman mondale jones. thank you for joining us.

happy pride month. >> thank you, you as well. >> i want to bring something from the op-ed. for that reason i will vote against for the people act, i will not vote to weaken or eliminate the filibuster. you said his piece may as well be titled "why i am voting to preserve jim crow." >> yexplain this to me please. >> you said this earlier today, our democracy is in crisis and it is facing its greatest threat since jim crow. we see it now and the voter suppression laws have been enacted and soon enough in texas and with unified democratic control of the federal government, we can actually act to save our democracy from the

autocratic imposes from the r democratic party. he's the person standing in the way of saving american democracy when we can pass for the people act. there is no substitute for the people act. it is the only thing that'll save our democracy and we have to move quickly in order to do that. >> representative jones, despite his views here, are you better off having manchin in the seat or kirsten cinema for her seat. schumer would not be the majority leader, would you have a bigger problem? >> look, i reject this scenario where we have to have our democracy undermine simply to pass the american rescue plan. i believe we can do both. what i am calling for is the president of the united states

to use the bully puppet and the statue and all the resources he has as the most powerful person in the world to strike a deal with a member of his own party to do that which requires to save our democracy from the people who are having an under assault right now. i don't think that's asking too much. in fact it is required in order for us to have all of the things that we take for granted in this country. you know all the proger progres. we know the republican party today can't win on the muerit o the policies today. that's untenable. we are witnessing the republican party set itself up so that in january of 2025, if a democratic

p president is fortunate enough to win, the year prior is not to certify that election. i think voting rights is something that should be bipartisan. i'm sorry. >> it's why i kind of reject the question. 55% of republicans support the act. of course we have centrists in

the party and those centrists in the house and the senate, like amy klobuchar are calling for the passage of the for the people act so there is no question the democratic party is a large enough tent to include centrist and conservative democrats. but with the right to vote in this country and american democracy, that should not fall on partisan lines. we see precisely that with regard to the republican party and voter suppression across the country along party lines. >> congressman, happy pride to you. thank you. >> take care. former president barack obama giving his tea cancel culture and he is warning that the dangers of going overboard. honey! scuff defense. [ chuckles ] scuff! -defense!

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aduhelm. former president barack obama talks about cancel culture and how it affects his daughters who are now young women in college as well as their peers. >> a lot of the dangers of cancel culture, we'll be condemning people all the time. at least among my daughters, they'll acknowledge that sometimes among their peer groups or college campuses, you will see folks going overboard. they have a pretty good sense of, look. we don't expect everybody to be perfect. we don't expect everybody to be politically correct all the time but we are going to call out institutions or individuals if they are being cruel, if they are discriminating against people. we do want to raise awareness. >> as i have said many times on

this program, there is a legitimate date about whether it has gone too far. cancel culture. a lot of times republicans yell cancel culture if someone holds a different position. it is a difference between canceling people who don't agree with you as conservatives do a lot. liz cheney, anyone? we'll be right back. e. stressed? no stress. exercise. but no days off! easy, no? no. no. no. no. but with freestyle libre 14 day, you can take the mystery out of your diabetes. now you know. sir, do you know what you want to order? yes. freestyle libre 14 day. try it for free.

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